Vacation
by Rae-316
Summary: Eric decides to reunite Jackie and Hyde on a trip to Disney World.
1. Breaking Up

Vacation

Chapter One: Breaking Up

"Donna!" Jackie screamed as she entered the bedroom, exasperated.

"What?" Donna's head poked out of her bathroom, drops of water falling to the ground as she quickly closed the door behind her, the water still running in the shower.

"Oh, sorry." Jackie said absentmindedly, taking a seat at Donna's desk, staring blankly at the books in front of her as she picked up a pencil and began to write her name on a sheet of paper, over and over.

Donna immediately realized something was wrong with her best friend.

"Jackie, did something happen?" Donna made sure the towel wrapped around her body was secure as she sat down on the edge of her bed, crossing her legs carefully as Jackie turned to face her.

"Steven and I had a fight." Jackie sighed, twisting a strand of her chocolate brown hair childishly as she dropped the pencil, sighing upon its release from her grip.

Donna wasn't sure how to respond. Jackie and Hyde fought all the time, but it was never serious. It was usually quick banter that ended in compromise.

"He..." Jackie paused, tears forming in the creases of her eyes. "He broke up with me."

"WHAT?" Donna screeched, instantly going to Jackie's side.

"It just happened so fast." Jackie sobbed, resting her head in her hands to avoid Donna's concerned glare.

Before Donna could reply, a large thud and yelp was heard coming from Donna's bathroom.

Jackie's head popped up, eyeing Donna suspiciously as Donna tried to laugh it off.

"Who's in there?" Jackie asked passively, already knowing the answer from Donna's eyes. "Ew, Donna!"

At once, Eric, lazily holding a towel to his dripping form, waved casually towards Donna, nervously eyeing Jackie, who immediately dropped her head again, avoiding any contact with a naked, wet Eric.

"Eric?" Donna gestured towards Jackie, a fierce edge in her tone.

"I dropped the shampoo on my foot." He whined, "I..."

Eric quickly ducked back into the bathroom as Donna sighed loudly, turning back to her friend.

"Jackie, what was this fight about?" Donna asked, squeezing Jackie's hand softly, letting her know it was ok to let it out.

"Well..." Jackie drifted off into thought, wiping remnants of tears from her cheeks.

_"I missed you." Jackie landed on Hyde's lap, pecking his cheek, making her way down his throat as he smirked widely, reciprocating the kisses. _

_"Same here." Hyde mumbled, savoring the taste of her lips. _

_"Can you skip work tomorrow?" Jackie asked in a whiny manner. "I can't stand not seeing you all day."_

_"I can try," Hyde nodded. "How was your day?"_

_Jackie shrugged, holding Hyde's body tighter between her legs, a warm feeling spreading throughout her body. God, she wanted him so bad. If Kelso and Fez weren't just upstairs, she would rip all his clothes off and ravage him, right there in the basement. _

_"That bad?" Hyde asked, raising his right eyebrow suggestively. _

_"My mom was bothering me all day, asking me all these questions about my future." Jackie pressed her palms against his chest, whimpering softly as she spoke, "I already told her that I'm taking some classes at Community College." Jackie rested her head against his body. "Besides, all I need in my future is you."_

_Hyde didn't say anything, he found it better to stay quiet when Jackie was in one of her contemplative moods. He wrapped his arms around her body, holding her tightly against him as she sighed once more, sadly. He hated seeing her this way, but knew there was little he could do besides hold her and comfort her. _

_"I almost forgot." Jackie jumped up excitedly, grabbing her purse from the couch as she sat back down in Hyde's lap, ignoring his grunt of discomfort. "This..." Jackie sifted through her bag, producing a tiny box, wrapped in pretty pink paper, "Is for you."_

_"For what?" Hyde laughed, eyeing the box in her palm._

_"Just for being you." Jackie shrugged, getting up again and grabbing a pop from on top of the washing machine, she grabbed Hyde's keys from his pocket, using his bottle opener to get the cap off. She took a sip and swung the keys around her index finger, smiling warmly at him as he began to rip through the wrapping paper covering his present. _

_Hyde finally got the paper off, crumbling it into a little ball and tossing it aside. He lifted the top of the box off, blinking widely at its contents. "Jackie..?"_

_"Do you like it?" Jackie asked excitedly, leaning against the washing machine, focusing on his Zen like reaction. _

_"It's..." Hyde picked up the plastic card, holding it up to his face to better examine it. "A credit card?"_

_"Yeah!" Jackie wrapped her arms around him quickly. "This way, you can buy things for me all the time." Jackie nodded her head in confirmation. "Expensive things."_

_"You got me a credit card?" Hyde repeated, looking at her in a wide eyed fashion. _

_"Yeah..." Jackie paused, biting her lip. "You don't like it?"_

_"Jackie," Hyde put the box down on the table. "We're not in high school anymore. We have to earn money and save it, not waste it on stupid presents like this."_

_"But..."_

_"It's a nice thought and all, Jackie, but," Hyde groaned as he adjusted his position in his chair. "We can't have a good future together if we're millions of dollars in debt, all because you want me to max out a credit card for you."_

_"What are you talking about?" Jackie's voice rose with anger. "I was just trying to be nice. I thought you'd like it. Everyone has credit cards now."_

_"So, if everyone jumped off a bridge, would you?" _

_"No, that's stupid." Jackie spat sharply. "Why are you picking a fight with me?"_

_"I'm not picking a fight with you Jackie." Hyde growled, scaring her a little. He never really yelled at her. No one really yelled at Jackie Burkhardt. She wouldn't take that. _

_"Yes, you are!" Jackie screeched back. "You always are."_

_"Shut up, Jackie." Hyde muttered. _

_Jackie's jaw dropped momentarily as she regained composure. "You can't talk to me like that!" Jackie's cheeks flushed with anger as she hovered over him. _

_He stood up, facing her eye to eye as she continued. _

_"You know, Steven, when someone does something nice for you, you're supposed to say 'thank you', not 'shut up'." Jackie crossed her arms over her chest in defiance. _

_"Something nice for me?" Hyde snorted, his voice rising in intensity. "Jackie, the credit card is obviously for you! Everything's always about you!"_

_"Well, duh!" Jackie screamed in his face. "God, when you get like this I..."_

_"You what?" _

_Jackie stared at him, not sure how to finish her sentence. _

_"Forget it." Jackie mumbled, grabbing her purse. "I hate when you're like this." She gave him one last expressionless look, as she turned towards the door. _

_"You hate when I'm like this?" Hyde grabbed her arm, whipping her back around. "Like what, Jackie? When I'm myself? I'll never be good enough for you, will I?" Hyde hadn't realized how loud he was or how tightly he was gripping her arm. _

_"Steven, you're hurting me." Jackie said softly, tears spreading across her face as his words stung her skin. _

_Hyde let go of her arm, wincing at the red marks left on her wrist. _

_"Jackie..." His eyes softened. _

_Jackie didn't say anything as she rubbed her arm tenderly, her eyes still on his, confused and scared. _

_Hyde couldn't believe what had just happened. His anger had gotten the best of him, as it usually does. He would never hurt her intentionally, she must know that. But as he looked deeply into her pained eyes, all he saw was fear. And it disgusted him to know that he was the cause of it. _

_"Jackie, I can't be with you anymore." He said softly, sitting back down. _

_He stared straight ahead at the TV screen. _

_Jackie inhaled sharply, her mind lost in a fog as she ran out the door, in tears. _

_Hyde kicked the table angrily. _

_What did he just do? He just lost the only thing in his life that truly matters._

_All over a stupid credit card. _

_But it wasn't just her present. Lately, he'd been having little notions of what it would be like to spend the rest of his life with Jackie Burkhardt. And to him, it seemed that she would never have the life she wished for. No matter how much money he made or how many times he says 'I love you', he'd never be what she deserves, and that killed him. _

_It was better this way, he thought. Maybe now she can find someone who's worthy of loving her. Because, he, as it turned out, wasn't._

"Hyde, man, I heard you broke up with Jackie." Eric spoke up as Hyde stumbled out of his bedroom, looking quite a mess.

"Yeah, so?" Hyde muttered.

"It's just...she..." Eric clammed up, remembering that Donna had made him swear he wouldn't repeat anything Jackie had told them earlier about the breakup. "It's kind of sudden, that's all."

"Whatever." Hyde mumbled, pushing his sunglasses further up the bridge of his nose. He sat in his chair, eyeing the credit card, still in the box on the table.

"Well, if you want to talk about it," Eric's voice trailed off as Hyde nodded in understanding.

"Thanks, man." Hyde mumbled, picking up the box. "Give this back to her, will ya?"

Eric took the credit card out of the box, pocketing it. "I can't believe she gave you a credit card." Eric laughed softly. "I mean, it's so not you."

Hyde nodded once more, heading back to the bedroom.

Eric sighed sadly, deciding to head back to Donna's to give Jackie the card back.

But as soon as he reached Donna's bedroom door, a brilliant idea popped into his head. Maybe Hyde doesn't appreciate plastic cash, but Eric sure did.

Donna recognized the look on his face as soon as he walked in.

"What are you thinking about?" Donna asked with a smirk.

"How would you like to go on an all expense paid vacation with two of our best friends?" Eric asked, wrapping his arm around her gently.

"That sounds great!" Donna laughed. "But where..."

"Shh," Eric held his finger up to her mouth. "Let me work it all out. Just tell Jackie to pack her bags because we're going to..." Eric eyed the map against Donna's wall, motioning his finger in circles, trying to decide on their destination. "Florida!"

"Florida?" Donna asked skeptically. "Why Florida?"

"Come on, Donna!" Eric screamed excitedly. "It's sunny, it's hot, and it has Disney World!"

"Jackie loves Disney World!" Donna hugged Eric wildly. "She thinks it's romantic."

"Well, that's perfect then." Eric clapped his hands together, deviously. "We're going to Disney World!"

Donna hugged Eric again, though she knew exactly what he was plotting, she couldn't help but find it sweet. Besides, they'd get to enjoy a vacation as well as get their two best friends back together. Who could ask for anything more?


	2. The Flight

**Vacation**

a/n: thanks to **Luci** for the beta.

**Chapter Two: The Flight**

"Jackie!" Donna called happily in her friend's direction, waving her hands frantically as she sat down next to the sullen brunette.

"Hi, Donna." Jackie slurred her words together softly as she took a sip from her coke, sadly. Donna hadn't seen Jackie this upset since Hyde cheated on her. Jackie swirled her straw around in her glass as Donna tried to grab her attention. Jackie finally looked up, only to see Donna's overwhelming smile.

"Do you still have that credit card?" Donna asked brightly.

Jackie let her eyes drop back down to her coke, letting go of the straw as she sifted through her purse and produced the shiny plastic card, which Donna grabbed promptly from her fingertips.

"It's such a waste, not to use it, don't you think?" Donna asked.

"I guess," Jackie replied, holding her head in her hands as she pushed her coke away from her. She couldn't muster the energy to drink, eat, or even do her hair since Hyde broke up with her. She was still in shock.

"I was thinking..." Donna smiled hopefully. "What if we took a trip? Just the two of us. We could use this," Donna pushed the card along the table, in front of Jackie's view, "to pay for it all."

"Trip?" Jackie tore her eyes away from the credit card to catch Donna's hopeful eyes. "Where?"

"Well, I was thinking," Donna quickly turned around and rummaged through her bag, finally pulling out a few brochures, throwing them in Jackie's direction.

Jackie sighed, picking one up and examined it carefully. The cover was bright and glossy, with a huge picture of a smiling sun and lots of kids, swimming and having fun.

"Florida?" Jackie asked in surprise.

"Florida!" Donna nodded excitedly. "What do you think?"

Jackie glanced towards the window, revealing the gray patches of clouds that awaited her outside. She could use the sun and maybe a trip was just what she needed to get over Hyde.  
  
"Well," Jackie pushed a smile through her gloomy appearance. "The credit card is in my mother's name..."

"Just another reason to go!" Donna exclaimed. "She owes you for all that emotional damage she put you through."

"I'm not damaged, Donna." Jackie snapped, crossing her arms angrily.

Donna scowled internally; she almost had Jackie, and now she was losing her.

"Sorry," Donna sighed, "It's just, Eric's been really annoying lately and I really wanted a break, just us girls." She gave Jackie a sincere, pitiful look and before she knew it, Jackie picked up one of the brochures and quickly flipped through it.

"Is that a yes?"

Jackie nodded slowly, taken aback as Donna hugged her.

"We're leaving tomorrow!" Donna shouted, pulling Jackie up as she stood up herself.

"Tomorrow?" Jackie questioned. "You already booked the flight? What if I said no?"

"Um," Donna racked her brain for a rational answer. "I was going to take Fez. You know, 'cause, maybe he has some relatives in Cuba and he could, um," Donna winced at what she was about to say, "Take a raft back to his homeland?"

"Fez is Cuban?" Jackie asked, suspiciously.

"Could be," Donna shrugged. "Anyway, I'll pick you up tomorrow, our flight leaves at 8!"

"In the morning?" Jackie screeched. "God, Donna, I need time to pack!"

"Jackie, you have all of today."

"That's not enough!" Jackie grabbed her purse and ran out the door of the Hub before Donna could reply.

Donna sat back down, a smug smile on her face. She couldn't wait to tell Eric that her part of the plan was in effect. Hopefully, his was successful as well...

* * *

"Hyde, my man!" Eric clapped his friend's back as he took a seat on the couch. 

"What do you want, Forman?" Hyde's eyes remained on the TV screen as Eric bit his lip, wondering how to phrase his next sentence.

"You know where I've never been?" Eric spoke more to himself then to Hyde. "Florida. What about you, Hyde?"

"Nope, never." Hyde mumbled. He had been in an awful mood since he broke up with Jackie. Eric couldn't wait to see his plan in action; he couldn't stand to see his friend heartbroken, even if Hyde would never admit that's what he was.

"Well, lucky for us," Eric stood up, blocking Hyde's view of the TV and gulping nervously as Hyde threw him a nasty glare. Eric pulled two airplane tickets out of his back pocket, throwing them in Hyde's lap. "I won a trip to Florida!"

"That's cool, Forman." Hyde nodded, examining the tickets. "You and Donna will have a great time."

Eric shook his head, an amused smile spread across his face, "Donna can't go."

"Why not?"

Why not? Eric hadn't thought that through.

"She's, um, she's..." Eric paused, scanning his brain for an answer. "She's allergic."

"To Florida?" Hyde asked skeptically.

"To the ocean." Eric nodded. "It's really bad. Hives and everything."

"What about when you guys were in California?" Hyde asked, handing the tickets back to Eric.

Eric grabbed for them, angry at himself for making up such a stupid lie.

"Ok, the truth is," Eric sighed. "Donna and I...we're having a rough time and I figured, you're single...so..." Eric smiled brightly. "Think of all the girls in Florida, man! Bikini-wearing, beer-chugging, girls!"

"Florida girls are pretty slutty from what I've heard." Hyde nodded.

"Extremely," Eric nodded, holding out his hand. "What do you say? A trip to Florida, just us guys?"

"I say," Hyde stopped himself cautiously. Maybe this is just what he needed to get his mind off of Jackie. To be miles away from her. "Why the hell not?" Hyde shook Eric's hand firmly, smiling. "Now, move." He pushed Eric out of the way, watching TV as Eric beamed behind him.

"We leave tomorrow." Eric said loudly, happy with Hyde's understanding nod.

Eric practically ran all the way to Donna's, particularly happy as he bumped into her in the driveway.

He grabbed her waist, raising his eyebrows in a questioning manner, in which she nodded happily.

"Good, then everything is all set." Eric said happily, spinning Donna around as he kissed her. "Operation Get Jackie and Hyde Back Together has begun!"

Donna smirked as her boyfriend ran off; making her way back to the house to pack for what should be one hell of a trip.

_The next day:_

"Jackie, I still can't believe you brought three suitcases with you." Donna laughed, finding her seat on the plane. She quickly scanned the aisles for Hyde and Eric, happy when she spotted them, a few rows in front of them. Eric and Donna had agreed that in order for everything to work according to plan, Jackie and Hyde can't know that they've been set up until the plane takes off. This way, there's no escape.

"Please, Donna," Jackie huffed as she sat down next to her best friend. "I packed light. I only took the essentials."

"Right," Donna shook her head, refusing to argue with Jackie. You just couldn't win with Jackie. "I'm so excited. I can't wait to get on the beach."

Jackie shrugged. She should be excited as well, shouldn't she? But she wasn't. Her mind was flowing with thoughts, none of which she felt like sharing with Donna.

_What was Steven doing? Was he missing her as much as she missed him? What if she just apologized, would it fix things?_

Jackie shook her head, her forehead throbbing.

"Jackie, are you alright?" Donna asked softly. "You look kind of pale."

"Flying has never agreed with me." Jackie answered quickly, leaning back in her chair.

Donna nodded her head in understanding, taking out a magazine as the flight attendant started her speech on flight safety.

_Meanwhile..._

"You know what I just realized, Forman?" Hyde said in astonishment as Eric looked up from his book. "I've never been on a plane before."

Eric laughed, "It's nothing, man."

"Yeah." Hyde nodded unsurely. Was it just him or was it incredibly hot? He pulled at his shirt collar, slipping his sunglasses in there.

Eric watched the flight attendant out of the corner of his eye. She was rambling about safety. Eric made sure that his seatbelt was on securely, quickly glancing back. He caught Donna's attention, nodding in her direction. She smiled back. So far, so good.

_An hour later...  
  
_"Jackie, are you sure you're ok?" Donna looked at her friend with concern.

"I haven't really eaten much lately, that's all." Jackie said, sighing in relief as the flight attendant announced it was safe to get up. "I'm going to the bathroom, Donna, just in case I..."

Donna nodded, standing up so Jackie could move past her.

She desperately wanted to go talk to Eric, but knew the timing wasn't right yet. Eric glanced back at her, like he had been all flight long and waggled his eyebrows in an amusing way. Donna giggled gently to herself, picking her magazine back up.

_Meanwhile..._

Hyde took a cool sip of water, trying to calm his nerves as Eric turned towards him.

Hyde stood up, surprised as Eric threw his book down in his seat, standing up and stretching his arms.

"Where you off to?" Eric yawned anxiously.

"Bathroom." Hyde muttered, sarcastically adding, "Is that ok with you?"

"Um," Eric glanced at Donna nervously. "Yeah."

He stepped aside, letting Hyde through, hoping that Donna would notice Hyde coming and hide, fast.

Eric stood behind Hyde, waving his arms, trying to catch Donna's attention. She looked up, practically falling beside herself. She quickly moved into Jackie's seat, which was farther away from Hyde and held the magazine in her face, hiding her nervous smile.

Eric breathed a sigh of relief as Hyde walked straight past Donna, not even noticing her.

Donna did the same, dropping the magazine and meeting Eric halfway between their rows. They hugged and kissed briefly before Donna smacked her forehead angrily.

"What?" Eric asked with concern.

"Jackie," Donna bit her lip, looking back at the bathrooms frantically. "She's back there too!"

TBC.....


	3. The Attack

Vacation

Chapter Three: The Attack

_God, I really should've eaten breakfast today._

Jackie clutched her growling stomach as she fiddled with the lock on the airplane bathroom's door. She didn't hear the lock click in place, but she was too nauseated to care. She sat down on the metal toilet bowl, holding her face in her palms as she tapped her foot against the floor erratically.

_I hate flying._

When she was younger, some of her parent's worst fights were on airplanes. Maybe that's why she truly hated flying; it reminded her of those public quarrels and what they led to. Jackie pulled her hair back, inhaling slowly, trying to calm her nerves. She hugged herself tightly, knowing the real reason she was so upset and that there was little she could do to change it.

Jackie's ears popped, like they usually did when she flew.

She wrapped her arms tighter around her body, curling up in a ball as she covered her ears with her hands, shutting her eyes tightly as well.

_Damn it._

All the bathrooms were full. He saw a big guy slip into the last free one as he finally approached the bathrooms of the plane. That guy didn't look like he'd be out soon. Hyde tried knocking on the other doors, rolling his eyes as he found each one to have an occupant inside. There was one door left, the one directly in front of him now. The door was closed, but he could tell it wasn't locked. He gently tapped his knuckles against the door, waiting for any sound to come from within. Nothing. His hand went for the doorknob, turning slightly. He opened the door cautiously, finally deciding it was safe to go in. He practically had to push himself into the tiny space they called a bathroom before he locked the door behind him.

His jaw dropped as he turned around, catching a glimpse of brown hair. He _knew_ that hair. His nose picked up on that familiar lavender scent. He _knew_ that scent.

Hyde's breathing had seemingly come to a halt as he leaned against the locked door of the tiny bathroom, absorbing the view in front of him. Jackie's eyes were closed and she was humming to herself, her hands covering her ears. Her foot was tapping neurotically, her fingers were twitching, and beads of sweat were forming on her neck, but her face was stunningly calm. Hyde couldn't take his eyes off her. He hadn't seen her in a few days, not since their messy breakup. He wanted to reach out to her so bad. She licked her lips nonchalantly, taking her hands away from her ears as she opened her eyes, registering the fact that she was now sharing the bathroom with another person.

Jackie stared at him, wide-eyed.

Jackie's lips separated, trying to produce some sort of sentence to capture her shock. Hyde focused on her lips, wet with saliva and dried lip gloss. _Strawberry_ lip gloss. Jackie had started wearing that lip gloss a few months ago, after he had casually mentioned that he liked the taste of strawberries. He never let her know that he noticed the switch of lip products, but he loved the way she'd do little things like that, to impress him.

He loved so many little things about her, completely insignificant things.

But he'd never let her know.

"I..." Jackie stood up, nervously twiddling her fingers in front of her. Hyde stepped aside as she tried to open the door, stammering as it wouldn't budge.

She was locked in here, with _him_.

Their bodies were so close, too close in this enclosing space.

"Let me..." Hyde mumbled, brushing her hand away from the knob, trying at it himself. He knew that in order to unlock the door, he'd simply have to lift the tiny lever, but he wouldn't let himself unlock it. He wanted to be near her. In fact, he was almost sure that if he spent the rest of his life, locked in this airplane bathroom with _her_, well, he wouldn't really mind.

Hyde let go of the doorknob, shrugging hopelessly at Jackie, who took a step back and leaned against the wall, almost as if she was trying as hard as she could to get as far away from his as possible.

"Why are you here?" She asked, her voice cracking with despair.

"Why are _you_ here?" Hyde counter attacked.

Jackie dismissed this, pinching herself. Was she imagining all this? It would explain a lot. She pictured Hyde in her mind all the time, doing things that he would never do in real life, like let's say, follow her to Florida in an attempt to win her back. He couldn't be real, she was hallucinating.

"You're not real." Jackie said loudly, waiting for 'Hyde' to magically disappear.

Hyde stared at her blankly, not sure how to respond. She looked really tired and pale, like she hadn't slept in days. And he was the cause of that, as well. So much pain, he made Jackie endure. He hated himself for it.

"Go away," Jackie said quietly, her voice wavering with determination. "You're not real." She closed her eyes, willing for him to just vanish, disappointed when she realized he was still there. She could feel his breath against her neck, she could faintly hear his pulse, which raced quicker as she stepped forward, sighing in defeat.

Yes, he was there. It wasn't just her imagination. And now she had made a complete fool of herself. She opened her eyes, searching his expression for a clue, since she didn't have one.

"Forman." Hyde mumbled angrily. "Forman did this."

"Donna helped." Jackie said with a bitter tone.

"Unbelievable." Hyde shook his head. "I should have known he was up to something. He tried to convince me that Donna was allergic to the ocean. You can't be allergic to the ocean." Hyde chuckled slightly at how dumb his friend could be.

Jackie stayed quiet; eyeing the door, hoping a flight attendant would barge in at any moment, demanding that they go back to their seats.

Hyde watched Jackie, who looked simply miserable.

"You look awful," He said quietly, not aware that he had spoken out loud.

"Excuse me?" Jackie pushed her way to the mirror, letting her hair loose and adjusting it mechanically. "I can't believe you locked yourself in here with me. That is _so_ like you." Jackie smiled as her defenses snapped back into place.

So there was the Jackie he knew and loved, returning from her short hiatus.

"For your information, princess," Hyde snorted. "I didn't even know you were in here."

"Yeah, right." Jackie said dryly, her voice slowly gathering momentum. "You obviously found out about our 'girls only' trip and crashed it." Jackie crossed her arms against her chest, gleaming with satisfaction. She pushed him away from the door, trying her best to ignore the spark of intensity she felt radiating from his skin.

He watched her dumbfounded, unsure of how someone could be so vulnerable one minute, and so callous the next.

She banged on the door angrily with one fist, glancing back at Hyde, who rolled his eyes back at her and pulled on the lever, unlocking the door with Jackie nearly falling out as it swung open. She straightened herself out, smoothing down her outfit, threw one last dirty look towards Hyde and made her way back to her seat, without another word. Jackie pushed past Donna angrily, buckling her safety belt and staring out the window, biting her lip before her sadness overwhelmed her again.

"Feeling better?" Donna asked quietly.

Jackie stifled a sharp cry, simply shaking her head in response, and continued to stare out the window, concentrating hard as she felt him pass their row.

* * *

Hyde glared at Eric as he sat back down in his seat, gripping the arm rests tightly.

"Something wrong?" Eric asked nervously, his eyes shifting quickly.

"Oh, no, nothing's wrong." Hyde laughed dryly, his voice underlined with anger. Eric felt a lump rising in his throat as Hyde turned to face him completely. "Forman," Hyde took a deep breath, his features slowly relaxing. "I'm going to kill you."

Eric felt his hands go limp as Hyde's fingertips gradually turned a pinkish white from holding onto the armrests so tightly.

"Hyde," Eric began, racking his brain for a solution to this new problem.

"You set me up," Hyde stood up, smirking subtlety as Eric sank down in his seat, his face overwhelmed with confusion and slight fear.

"I..." Eric quickly got up, running down the aisle towards Donna and Jackie. Jackie was staring out the window, trying her best to ignore Eric as he waved his hands frantically. "Donna, you need to help me."

"Eric!" Donna yelled through her teeth, motioning towards Jackie. "You just blew our cover."

"No," Jackie rolled her eyes. "He didn't."

"What?" Donna looked back at Eric, concerned as Hyde showed up behind him.

"Forman, what the hell?" Hyde screamed angrily. "No one asked you to get involved in my relationship problems!"

"Hyde," Donna stood up, placing a comforting arm on his shoulder. "Eric and I, we couldn't stand to see you both so upset."

"I'm not upset," Hyde snapped, "I'm fine."

Jackie drew her eyes away from the window, wincing at his words as Donna continued to explain their actions.

"Ok..." Donna shook her head sadly. "It's just...well..." Donna looked at Eric for help. Eric skipped a beat, glancing between Jackie and Hyde, finally remembering why they had started this crazy scheme in the first place.

"Ok," Eric cleared his throat, placing an arm around Donna, silencing her. "You two need to get over this, alright? I know that deep down you're both madly in love with each other. Hyde, I mean, you've actually become sort of nice since you started dating Jackie," Hyde rolled his eyes as Eric turned to Jackie, "And Jackie, you're actually kind of tolerable these days." Jackie rolled her eyes as well, biting her tongue to prevent from lashing out at Eric. "You two need each other."

"I don't need him." Jackie snorted.

"Oh, please," Hyde muttered, "I'm the one who doesn't need you."

"Guys..." Donna squeezed Eric's hand. "This isn't working." She whispered into his ear. Eric shrugged, not knowing what else to do.

"Really, Steven?" Jackie stood up, her nostrils flaring out angrily as she spoke, her voice gathering momentum. "If it weren't for me, you'd probably be a homeless burnout." Jackie didn't mean a word she said, but the more his eyes stared into hers, the more she wanted to hurt him.

"Jackie, you are so full of it!" Hyde yelled angrily, sending shivers down Jackie's back. "All you ever gave me was complaints and headaches."

"Well, everyone knows you never gave me a thing!" Jackie snapped back, stepping closer to him, yelling right in his face. "'Cause you're so cheap!"

"Trust me, Jackie," Hyde said coolly, "I'm _not_ the cheap one."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Jackie screamed, her eyes bulging out with intense scorn. Everyone on the airplane was silent, watching the couple argue. A flight attendant came rushing over, tapping Hyde's shoulder.

"Is something wrong here?" The flight attendant asked sweetly.

"No!" Jackie and Hyde screamed simultaneously, exchanging infuriated looks.

"I can't stand you," Jackie muttered as Eric and Donna watched in nervous anticipation.

"I can't believe I wasted so much time with you." Hyde muttered bitterly under his breath, his eyes completely void of passion.

Jackie's anger faded as her eyes welled up with belated tears. She sat back down, defeated, wiping at her eyessoftly as Donna sat down next to her.

"Hyde..." Eric said faintly, trying to grip onto his shoulder.

Hyde glared at Jackie, his heart aching in remorse as he brushed Eric's arm away from him and walked back to his seat.

"Jackie, I'm so sorry." Eric said softly as she nodded in understanding, watching him retreat back to his seat.

"Jackie, are you ok?" Donna glanced at her friend nervously.

"I'll be fine, Donna." Jackie grinned between sobs tears. "Steven's just...he's stupid, that's all." Donna nodded unsurely as Jackie went back to staring out the window.

* * *

Eric didn't dare open his mouth. He could feel Hyde's anger with every breath he took, every time he cracked his knuckles. Hyde had ordered some alcohol from the flight attendant and had downed the tiny bottle of Jack Daniels as soon as he received it. He was working on his second bottle, barely acknowledging Eric, until he finally spoke up. Eric stirred about his seat as Hyde grunted, slamming the bottle down on the tray in front of him.

"Why does it have to hurt so fuckin' much?" Hyde asked aloud, taking another sip of his drink.

Eric didn't bother to answer the question, figuring that Hyde just needed to let some steam out, rant until he calmed down.

"You know what really sucks, Forman?"

Eric shook his head 'no', waiting for Hyde to continue.

"I really," Hyde leaned back in his chair, his eyes drifting in thought, "I mean, I _really_ love that girl." He dropped his head in his hands, sighing softly as Eric patted his back. "Man, I'm so stupid."

"Hyde, this could be your chance, you know?" Eric offered, "Win her back."

"Eric," Hyde scoffed, "That's not who I am. I don't chase girls."

"You want her back, don't you?" Eric asked, frustrated.

"I guess," Hyde shrugged, taking a sip of his liquor. Eric narrowed his eyes disapprovingly. "Yeah, I do."

"Then make her see that." Eric said excitedly, "Remember when you guys made me fly out to California to get Donna?" Eric smiled encouragingly, "It works, man." Eric glanced back at Donna, who smiled at him softly as she continued to comfort Jackie. "And it's so worth it."

Hyde nodded briefly, finally seeing what his friend was talking about.

If he wanted Jackie back, he was going to have to fight for her, just like he had to last year, with Kelso. Except this time, there was no competition. He had to prove to Jackie that he still loved her, that he needed her, even though he denied it.

He needed to apologize to Jackie, to make her see why he acted the way he did, why he had picked that fight. He needed to mend things.

Once they land, he'd figure it out. He'd finally have his chance.

_Jackie Burkhardt, you **will** take me back._


End file.
